by Sylvia Day
Her mouth fell open as a woman beautiful enough to put Angelina Jolie out of a job unfolded from the backseat. The gal had black hair and green eyes like Stacey, but unlike Stacey, she was tall and willowy with the defined muscles of a body builder. She was also drop-dead gorgeous—blessed with perfectly symmetrical facial features and softly tanned skin. Dressed in a gray sleeveless tunic and loose-legged pants, her garments reminded Stacey of the ones Connor had been wearing when he arrived on Lyssa’s doorstep.
“I have no idea who that is,” Stacey said.
“Captain Bruce,” the woman called out in greeting, smiling in a way that made Stacey’s skin crawl. She had the same accent that Connor and Aidan had, which only increased Stacey’s unease.
“You know her?” Stacey asked, heart sinking. No way could she compete with a woman who looked like that.
“Rachel,” Connor rejoined.
The grim tone of Connor’s voice didn’t help settle Stacey, like she would have thought. Yeah, she was glad he wasn’t happy to see Rachel, but on the other hand, drama scenes were not her cuppa tea.
“Look how sweetly you protect your human lover,” Rachel drawled, resting her arm elegantly along the top of the open car door. “I always said the need for sex was a weakness unique to male members of the Elite.”
“What the fuck is she talking about?” Stacey muttered. “Who is that?” Her eyes widened. “Oh my god! You’re not married are you?”
“What?” Connor barked, glaring at her. “To her? Are you nuts?”
“To anyone?”
“No!”
Rachel cleared her throat. “Excuse me. Can you argue after I conclude my business? I have a long drive ahead of me and I would like to ‘hit the road’ as they say.”
Aidan came back. He handed something to Connor, then looked at Stacey. “You need to come inside, Stace.”
Stacey glanced down at the object in Connor’s hand and comprehension dawned.
“Oh, I get it!” She grinned sheepishly. “This is about the sword!”
“Sweetheart,” Connor bit out between clenched teeth. “Go inside the damn house. Now.”
“Bossy, aren’t they?” Rachel said, laughing. “You can come with me, sweetheart. I have some…friends…who would love to meet you.”
“You’ll have to kill me, Rachel,” Connor challenged, “to get to her.”
Rachel tossed her hair over her shoulder and laughed. “I know! Isn’t that delicious? As impatient as I was for the Key to be found, getting you and Cross in the bargain makes it all worth it.”
Totally confused, Stacey’s gaze drifted to the man in the driver’s seat. He looked like a dude from Men in Black. Black suit, blacker sunglasses. Something about him was even weirder than Rachel’s Cruella de Ville-vibe, even though he didn’t move and bore no expression on his face.
“But claiming the Key now would be a bit like putting the cart before the horse,” Rachel said with a careless wave of her hand. “So you can enjoy your unfortunate humans a little bit longer.”
“Why does she keep saying ‘human’ like that?” Stacey whispered fiercely, disliking the other woman immensely. Rachel was so damned smug and nasty. And the way she set Connor and Aidan on edge didn’t recommend her too highly either.
“What do you want?” Connor asked, moving to stand by the steps as if he dared anyone to pass him and gain entry to the house. Considering he had a huge unsheathed sword in his hand, the intimidation was highly successful. At least for Stacey.
“You have something that belongs to me, Bruce. I want it back.”
He descended the first step. “Fuck you.”
Rachel’s grin widened. “I would not come empty-handed, surely you know that?”
“You show us yours first,” Connor rumbled before turning his head and hissing to Aidan, “Get her in the house!”
Aidan caught her upper arm in a relentless grip and tugged her toward the door.
“Fine.” Stacey went. “But I’m watching through the window.”
“I want the trinity,” Rachel said.
Connor shrugged. “No idea what that is. Looks like you’re shit out of luck.”
Stacey paused at the door. “Stop provoking her! She’s a nut.”
“Perhaps this will jog your memory,” Rachel said. She looked into the backseat. “Get out.”
The other rear door opened and a man stepped out.
“Oh my god,” Stacey breathed, her hand falling away from the door handle as she recognized the man wearing a black turtleneck sweater and ski pants. “That’s Tommy! What the fuck is he doing with them?”
The tension that gripped Connor’s large frame was palpable. “Cross…that’s Stacey’s ex.”
Tommy stood next to the car in an obvious daze, his eyes sightless and uncomprehending.
The next moment the driver moved, reaching over to the front passenger seat and yanking a bound and gagged body into view.
Stacey screamed, doubling over at the sight of Justin’s terrified eyes and tear-stained face.
Rachel’s smile was chilling. “So, now I have shown you mine. And he will stay mine until you return the trinity to me.”
Goaded by instinct, Stacey ran for the stairs and her son. Connor’s arm thrust out lightning quick, slamming her back. She yelled her fury and frustration, flailing as she went down, losing her breath as Aidan caught her and held her writhing body with steely arms. She arched and twisted, kicking her legs madly, but he was too big and too strong.
Rachel reached into her pocket and withdrew a cell phone. She tossed it at Connor, who caught it and held it to his chest. “I will call you with instructions.”
“If something happens to the boy,” Connor warned, his voice low and deadly earnest. “I’ll torture you before I kill you.”
“Ooh!” She gave a vixen-ish little shake of her shoulders. “Sounds delicious.” Her lovely face hardened. “I want that trinity, Captain. See that I get it or the kid will pay.”
“Nooooo!” The sound that left Stacey’s body was inhuman. It was an animal’s cry, one filled with pain and frustration and a mother’s fear for her child. She struggled within Aidan’s unyielding grasp, jerking and scratching to be freed. “Justin!”
She watched in wide-eyed horror as her son’s panicked writhing mirrored her own. Justin’s bound hands lifted and struck out, knocking the sunglasses from his captor’s face, revealing a visage that stopped her heart. The man hit back, knocking Justin unconscious. Then he turned his black gaze to Stacey, grinning with a yawing cavern of jagged teeth, taking pleasure in her torment and revulsion.
Her cries echoed around them, then Aidan’s hand was over her mouth, muffling her, his deep voice murmuring to her.
Why weren’t they doing anything? Why were they letting that bitch climb back into the car and shut the door? Why was Tommy just standing there, barely blinking as the car reversed out of the driveway with their child inside it? Why was Aidan restraining her, gagging her, crooning to her as if all the promises of safety and retribution he was making would calm her?
The thing in the driver’s seat was driving away with her baby and she could only watch, imprisoned by the arms of someone she’d thought was a friend.
Aidan held her until the car was out of sight, then he let her go. Her shaky legs caused her to stumble and fall to her knees, then she scrambled to her feet, pushing past Connor when he attempted to restrain her. She ran to Tommy and beat at him, yelled at him, shook him.
“You goddamned junkie!” she screamed, slapping his face with every bit of strength she possessed. “You worthless piece of shit!”
Then she was running, running for the life of her son, clearing her property and chasing the black sedan down the road. It was quickly beyond sight, but she didn’t stop. She couldn’t stop. She ran until she couldn’t run anymore, sinking to the ground and crying. Wailing. Hiccupping.
“Stacey.” Connor knelt beside her, his eyes red and watery and filled with such compassion.
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“No!” she shouted. “You do not g-get to cry. You let them t-take him…” She slapped at his bare chest, then pounded her fists against it. “How c-could you l-let them take him? How could y-you?”
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, making no effort to defend himself from her attack. “I’m so sorry, Stace. There was nothing I could have done. If there had been any way to take him back alive, I would have. You have to believe me.”
“You didn’t even try!” she sobbed. “You didn’t even try.”
Stacey crumpled into his lap, her blurry gaze fixed on the unpaved road. His feet were bare and bleeding from coming after her. Her heart clenched at the sight, which only pissed her off further.
Connor picked her up and carried her back. She had no strength left to resist, but she found no comfort in his embrace.
Her precious child was gone.
Chapter 12
Lyssa was crying on the couch when Connor returned to the house with Stacey. Aidan was pacing. Tommy was restrained with duct tape in a chair by the door. With his mind connected to the Twilight, Stacey’s ex couldn’t be trusted. The Elders had once attempted to kill Lyssa through a sleepwalker, which had alerted them to the fact that such machinations were possible.
For his part, Connor felt helpless, a state of being that was anathema to his mental health. Stacey’s pain was gnawing at him, driving him half-mad with bloodlust and restless fury.
“Oh god, Stace!” Lyssa pushed to her feet as the screen door shut silently behind them. She hurried over, embracing her best friend as soon as Connor set her down. “I’m so s-sorry! This is all my fault.”
Stacey shook her head. “You couldn’t do anything.” Her venomous gaze moved from Aidan to Tommy to Connor, who flinched. “Too bad we didn’t have some big strong men around,” she sneered, brushing past everyone on the way to the phone.
“Stacey.” Lyssa’s voice was low and pleading. “You can’t call for help.”
“Why the fuck not?” she demanded, reaching for the handset with a violently shaking hand. “Because the cops might come out here and think, ‘Hmm? Look at these two brawny, ex-Special Forces guys who didn’t do a goddamned thing to stop a kidnapping!’”
Lifting his chin, Connor knew she had every right to be pissed based on the information she had, but her derision still wounded deeply. Not his pride or his ego, both of which had suffered more than a few dents over the course of his lifetime, but his heart, which had never been engaged enough to feel pain.
The damn thing was killing him now.
“You don’t know her like we do, Stacey,” he said gently. “There was nothing we could have done that would still assure Justin’s safety.”
“Bullshit!” Stacey’s eyes were wide and dark, the dilated pupils leaving only a faint ring of the brilliant green irises. Her skin and lips were pale, her hands shaking. “Either one of you—alone!—could have taken out both her and that freak with the mask on!”
“Are you sure there were only two of them?” he asked, making her pause. “With those tinted windows it was impossible to see into the backseat.”
“There was someone else in the back,” Aidan assured. “Someone closed the door on the passenger side after Tommy got out.”
A frown marred Stacey’s brow as she considered this.
Connor pressed on, needing her to understand, “Justin is valuable to her because of you, Stace. Rachel was prepared to spar, with the goal being to kill Justin and take you instead. That would up the ante, and trust us, Rachel likes sky-high antes. She was standing next to the open car door for a reason. I’m positive she had her glaive right there within reach, waiting for one of us to make a move.”
“What the hell kind of antiquities are you dealing in,” she snapped, “that would be valuable enough to kidnap someone over them?”
“Hey.” Lyssa spoke softly, stepping closer and putting her arm around Stacey’s quivering shoulders. “Let’s go in the kitchen, and I’ll tell you everything.”
“I need to call the damn cops.”
“Let me explain first. Then, if you still feel like you need the police, I’ll drive you over there myself.”
“What is wrong with you people?” Stacey yelled, her voice hoarse. “My son is gone and you want me to do nothing?”
“No,” Connor murmured, his gut knotted painfully. “We want you to believe in us—your friends. The people who l-lo—”
The word strangled in his throat, his insides too raw to bare himself to further scorn. He’d failed her. Even though he couldn’t have done any more than he did without jeopardizing Justin’s life, he’d still failed to shield her from pain.
Love.
Was that the right word? He cared for her. Wanted to be with her. Hated to see her so devastated. He wanted her smiles and her laughter, wanted her gentle touches and breathless cries of pleasure. He wanted to get to know her and share himself in return. Was that love?
Perhaps it was the seeds of it. The first sprouting. Would it wither now and die? Or could he repair the damage and have a chance to watch it grow?
“I’m your best friend, Stace.” Lyssa’s sweet voice held a note of steel that cut into Connor’s thoughts. “I love you. I love Justin. I want him back as much as you do.”
Connor’s chest grew tight as Stacey broke down and cried, leaning heavily into her friend, her black curls blending with Lyssa’s blonde strands. It was the sound of hopelessness and despair, and it ripped him to shreds. She was his woman. The only one he’d ever had. It was his job to protect her and keep her safe. Instead he introduced her to the danger that wounded her so gravely.
“Bruce!”
He tore his gaze away from Stacey’s back as she left the living room and looked at Aidan. “What?”
“Pull it together and let’s fix this.”
“I am together.” He wasn’t. He felt like he was falling apart. Such an odd feeling to be scattered. His heart in one place, his brain in another, his body tense with the need to give chase. “We can track them through the cell phone. McDougal has the capability.”
Aidan nodded, his features tight with strain. “Comes in handy when you get an out-of-the-blue offer for a priceless artifact. We track down the dealer and verify that they’re legit before proceeding with the transaction. But that’s not going to help us figure out what Rachel wants.”
Because of the time Connor had spent inside Aidan’s slipstream, he had a mental storage of Aidan’s memories. He’d been rifling through them ever since Rachel had made the demand and he couldn’t find anything resembling a trinity in the recollections. To Aidan’s knowledge, none of the artifacts he’d recovered were the item Rachel wanted.
Connor ran both hands through his hair, tortured by the sounds of muffled crying coming from the kitchen. “Rachel is either completely insane or she’s talking about that dirt clod you’ve got.”
“Shit.”
“Told you I had it together,” he muttered.
Stacey screeched and something made of glass broke in the other room. He winced. If Lyssa was telling her about the Twilight, things were about to get a whole lot worse.
“I’ve got the duffle in the car,” Aidan muttered, before sprinting out the door.
Staring down at the cell phone in his hand, Connor started a checklist of necessary items in his mind. He’d need transportation, clothes, a cooler with food and drink…
“What the hell have you two done to my best friend?” Stacey asked coldly, entering the room.
Connor squared his shoulders and faced her head on. “We saved her life.”
“Bullshit.” Her eyes snapped with emerald fire, which was actually a relief after the blankness he’d seen before. “You’ve got her convinced that you’re dream fighters and she’s some prophet of doom and gloom.”
“Prophecy,” he corrected. “And we’re Elite Warriors, Stacey. We don’t fight dreams, we protect them.”
The quivering of her lower lip was the only sign of her distress.
Her shoulders were back, her chin tilted stubbornly. Ready to take on the world alone.
“I knew there was something wrong with you,” she said bitterly. “Too good to be true. What do you want?”
He arched a brow.
“Come on,” she coaxed with a sneer. “Two gorgeous guys appear on our doorsteps out of nowhere. They have no past and my kid gets snatched. Coincidence? I don’t think so.”
It took a moment for her accusation to sink in. Then, “You think I did this?” He stared at her a moment, slack jawed. “You think I had a hand in kidnapping Justin?”
“It’s the only thing that makes any sense to me.”
“Who said this shit has to make sense?”
Connor lunged and caught her to him, thrusting his free hand in her hair and tugging her neck back, forcing her to look at him. “We made love. I was inside you. How can you accuse me of something so heinous after what we’ve shared?”
“It was sex,” she dismissed. But her chest was heaving against his and tears filled her eyes.
Prepared to do anything—anything—to win her trust back, he released her, then caught her hand in his and dragged her to the kitchen.
Lyssa waited on the threshold, but quickly stepped out of the way. Connor walked up to the wooden knife block on the white ceramic tiled counter and withdrew a blade. With gritted teeth, he turned to face Stacey and slashed diagonally across his chest, cutting himself from shoulder to abdomen.
She screamed as blood welled and ran down his torso. He tossed the knife in the stainless steel sink and said grimly, “Don’t take your eyes off me.”
The burning began and then the itching. His skin healed itself almost instantaneously. It had been a shallow wound, quickly mended, unlike Aidan’s deep gash, which had taken hours to resolve.
“Holy shit,” she breathed, stumbling as her knees gave out.
Catching her, he helped her to the nearby table in the breakfast nook. She touched his skin, swiping through the blood to see that there was no mark left behind. Aidan returned at that moment and set the black duffle down next to her elbow.
He unzipped the bag and pulled out the book he’d stolen from the Elders and the cloth-wrapped bundle. “We need to clean this thing off, Bruce, and see if we can find mention of whatever-it-is in here.”